After the Rain, Before the Sun
by equestrian4life
Summary: On a fateful night exactly 14 years ago, a girl arrived in the Yato household, to forever change the sibling's destiny...
1. Prologue

_Hiya all! This is my first fanfic, so please be nice about your critisms. I usually write my own original stories, and they're usually a bit different from fanfics, so sorry if it's too wordy, I'm trying my best to go through it after and cut it down._

_Also, most chapters will probably be short, as each chapter (will probably) represent 1 flashback. There's a possibility that I will go back to edit previous works as I'm never satisfied with them. Also, I will try my best to upload as often as possible, but it probably won't be as regular as I can only write when I have inspiration._**_  
_**

_And also, tell me if I get a quote or anything wrong._

* * *

**_"You'll see what happens after you choose the path of the warriors like the rest of us Yato, Kamui. When you look back, you'll see that there is nothing left there except for destruction and dead bodies."_**

* * *

**Prologue**

Rain began to fall, breaking the silence of the aftermath of yet another devastating war. A lone boy stood amidst the corpse-strewn battlefield, drenched in both blood - it still cannot be said for certain whose blood it was; his or his enemy's - and water. He carried with him an umbrella, yet he did not open it. He had on an unwavering smile, yet if you were to look deep inside the depths of his heart, you would find that he wasn't at all truly happy.

As the rain washed the blood away in a sea of red, the boy tipped his head back, opened his deep-sea blue eyes, let his ever-smiling facade drop, and gazed up into the stormy, chaotic sea of grey clouds above. He let his mind wander, drifting in and out of memories accumulated throughout all 18 years of his life, until he finally happened upon that one night, exactly 14 years ago...

* * *

It was raining. Water poured down in sheets, blocking out everything, except for the shadows of two figures. They were facing each other. One was a girl, the other a man. The girl stood tall and proud, looking determined. She had to win this. For if she lost, the silver-haired samurai who had taken her in would die. And that, she could never allow to happen. She would protect him, like what she swore when they had first met.

The girl shook her wet, orange hair, the buns it was usually in slashed off with the clean cut of her opponent's sword.

She would protect him, the way _she_ had protected _him_ that day exactly 10 years ago. And she would continue to protect him, like how _she _had continued to protect _him _all the way until that last moment when her wrecked body finally fell to the ground, and her soul, forever bright and colourful, finally left that dull, grey, ever-raining world.

Breathing hard, the girl held her most fatal wound, which was gushing blood, soaking through the hard-packed earth, and colouring the ground a rusted red. And yet, even while her injuries were so severe they made her deep-sea blue eyes squint in pain, and even while she felt so weak, she couldn't even open her umbrella-weapon to stop the rain, she positioned herself for one last, final attack.

The girl tensed her muscles, getting ready... to... go! And the girl lunged forward.


	2. Flashback 1

**Kamui**

It was a night like every other on the home-planet of the Yato. Raining, raining, raining. Never stopping... Never ending.

It was on this night of unchanging gloom, when, Kamui, who was just barely a child then, plopped himself down by the windowsill, and gazed outside into the grey night sky. He found himself listening to the melancholy dance of raindrops against the tin roof, creating a rhythmic drumming uncomfortably like that of an unending rainstick. He watched with the unbearable patience and innocence of a child as bucket-loads of water streaked down the window-glass.

He was waiting for someone, Umibozu, or at least that's what they called him, to come home. He wasn't sure whether or not he really would (heck, no one was!), but Kamui knew that he had to wait there anyway. Every night, until he lost the fight and fell into that dreamless sleep that always haunted him. He had to, for he would not - could not - forgive himself if Umibozu came home to find that he wasn't there, in his usual place, still, forever, waiting.

Afterall, hadn't he promised?

_"I'll be home soon. So, just wait for me for now, alright? Promise me."_

_"I promise."_

_"That's a good boy. I'll bring you something the next time I'm back."_

Yes, that was what he had said. That was what Umibozu had said. That was what his father had said.

* * *

Day after unchanging day, night after unchanging night, Kamui had waited, and Umibozu had not come home. It was a never-ending cycle, or at least that's what he had thought...

Until now.

Hearing a noise, Kamui rushed to the door, hoping, hoping... Yes! Kamui scrambled to help as Umibozu stumbled through the door, umbrella, monster-strength, almost-bald head, and all.

Behind him came a young girl about Kamui's age, drenched in rainwater, head down, with an empty look of despair in her amethyst-coloured eyes. She was going to be beautiful when she grew up, any man could tell, with her silky brown hair that was so light it was almost blond, and pale, creamy skin. However, Kamui was thinking of neither of these things when he saw her.

"Who is she? Who is that girl?" he asked, a curious look in his eyes.

For he did not know her. He, the heir to the ancient warrior blood of the Yato, the strongest clan in the universe, did not know this girl.

"Kamui."

Hearing his father's voice, Kamui tore his gaze away from the strange girl.

"Father..."

"This is Mila. She's going to be living here from now on." Umibozu turned to the girl and patted her on the head, ignoring Kamui's pleadingly hopeful expression.

"Tell your mother to take care of her, I have to leave for a bit."

Then, seeing the crestfallen look on his face, Umibozu gruffly added, "She's a sweet girl. I'm sure you'll become great friends," before turning and walking back out through the door again.

And the last Kamui saw of his father, for many years to come, was his broad, muscled back, disappearing into the oncoming rain.

* * *

_A scream rang out in the deadly silence of the night, echoing throughout the house now void of any living creatures._

_A lone man walked down the winding path approaching the estate. An umbrella hung limply by his side - though it hadn't rained for months. His almost-bald head gleamed in the moonlight, a shining beacon to safety under the wing of a monster in the darkness of the murderous night. Though no one would respond to it. There had been a massacre that very night, the blood of anyone who dared step foot, let alone live, in that house spilling. Anyone, and everyone. Everyone... except one._

_A mere child, she was, and yet, she had already witnessed the brutal murder of her parents, done in cold blood, and the force that had taken everything she had and trampled on it._

_"Creeeeaakk."_

_The stairs leading up to the wrecked mansion threatened to collapse as the man took them, one by one, getting closer and closer to the entrance. The entrance where the girl now stood, looking like a ghost in her flowing white nightgown, covered in the red of blood, blown around in the wind. Almost like a remnant of the ancient relic known as the Karunes, the strongest clan to roam the universe, rival to only the blood-thirsty clan of the Yato._

_"You have a good look in your eyes," the man spoke as he reached the entrance, breaking the silence with his booming voice._

_"Step aside, girl, and I just might let you live."_

_The girl did not move._

_"Hahahahaha." The man suddenly burst out into the loud sound of his laughter._

_"Don't care if you die or not, now, eh?" the man turned serious._

_"Well, that's fine by me. I actually quite like you, kid, and your rebellious nature. How about this..." and the man leaned in, closer, his voice turning into a whisper._

_"How'd you like it? How'd you like another reason - chance - to live, brat? How'd you like..." and an evil smile worthy of even the devil himself appeared on the man's lips._

_"To serve the Yato?"_


	3. Flashback 2

**Kagura**

It had been a Sunday morning, Kagura remembered, that day when it all first began. Or at least for her, it was.

In her memory, the day was bright, perhaps even sunny, but she knew that had not been the case. For if it had, Mila-nee and her baka-aniki wouldn't have had to suffer so much. But of course, back then, Mila-nee had still a smile on her face, and Kamui had still simply been - to her - ... aniki.

* * *

"No!" Kagura was whining now, her lips pouting, her sky-blue eyes widened in an innocent pleading. "She promised! Mila-nee promised me that she'd play with me!" And with that said, she grabbed hold of Mila's thin, piano-player fingers with her own, tiny hand, and dug her heels into the ground.

"Now, now, Kagura," Mila tried - unsuccessfully - to calm her down.

"You already played with her yesterday. I have something important to show Mila. You can play with her tomorrow," Kamui, too, tried to reason with her.

"No! She promised! She promised me!" Kagura steadfastly refused to let go. Then, using her inherited monster Yato-strength, and the weight of her tiny body, Kagura began to pull Mila away from Kamui.

Mila, not wanting to hurt her (although not related by blood, their bond was even stronger than that of family) little sister, let out an exasperated sigh and said to Kamui, Sorry about this. I hope what you wanted to show me wasn't that important. Can it wait until tomorrow?"

But before a reply could be uttered, several things happened at once. Mila, seemingly - to the untrained eye - for no reason, stiffened. And Kagura, caught by surprise by the sudden change, toppled over, pulling Mila along with her. The rain, which had been coming down relentlessly a second ago, seemed to suddenly slow. The wind almost seemed to stir over the usually-perfectly-still land.

And in the next moment, all hell broke loose.

Four. Five. Six figures leapt down before them. Mila, having sensed what was happening just in time, flipped over Kagura, bringing her up and tossing her to Kamui behind, before turning back to confront their assailants.

"Take her and run!" Mila screamed, dodging a slice of their blade. "You've got to get her out of here!" seeing him hesitate, she added, her voice softer and asking, "Kamui. Please."

And Kamui, seeing the look in Mila's eyes, reluctantly turned his back and fled, a frightened Kagura in his arms.

* * *

"Stop!" Kagura shouted, finally coming back to her senses, "Stop... Kamui..." And as she said this, her nose became stuffed and red, and her eyes teared up. "Mila-nee... Mila-nee's still back there! Fighting them! Alone! We have to go back and help her!"

Bangs hung over Kamui's eyes, so one could not tell his thoughts. However, hearing Kagura's plea, his legs slowed down to a halt, and his arm muscles gave. Saying nothing, he put Kagura down, and turned her back to face the fight.

Kagura almost started in surprise, her mind reeling at the sight her eyes beheld.

Mila was covered in blood. Only... it wasn't her blood. There she stood, holding the sword one of their attackers had carried, raised above her head, blade pointed at the heart of a near-dead assailant, crumpled bodies spread out around her, soaking in a sea of blood.

"You're wrong. I'm nothing like those greedy, dirty, blood-thirsty Yato. There is only one reason for which I fight... And it's not for my enjoyment!" She said in response to a question heard only by her ears, her breathing loud. Plunging the sword into the man's body, her violet eyes crazed, she whispered, so softly only Kagura's sensitive child ears could here, "I fight so that I may protect my precious siblings."

* * *

"Come on, let's go," Kamui's voice startled Kagura from her thoughts. Turning, she saw her aniki walking towards them, a blank, expressionless mask over his features. "The rain will wash away the blood," he added, almost as a second thought.

"You're right," she heard herself say, her voice still her own while her mind felt as if it had aged 100 years.

And as the fatigue overtook her, the last thing she heard before her eyes closed and she fell to the ground, drowning in the comfortable darkness of unconsciousness, was Mila's voice, echoing throughout the empty caverns of her dreams.

"Yes."

* * *

_It was raining. Like every day and night before, and every day and night to come, rain was falling on the barren land of which the Yato called home._

_Two figures stood, in the rain, without an umbrella or any kind of shield. One was tall, the other short. One was male, the other a female. One a grown man, the other a mere child._

_As the rain plastered the young girl's hair onto her head, and ran smoothly down the almost-bald head of the warrior, a few words could be glanced off their conversation._

_"Do you vow to serve the Yato - to protect the Yato - with your life? Do you promise to stay in this world, on this land, for all of eternity? Do you swear... to never defy the Yato... to never defy me?"_

_"I do."_

_"Then show me! Prove it to me! Do it! Live... for the Yato!"_


	4. Flashback 3

**Kamui**

The sun should've been setting. And it would've been, had the clouds not been blocking it's fiery descent across the sky.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Mila sat alone, hugging her knees, her hair falling forward, casting her face into shadow. "The sunset, I mean."

"... Yeah," was Kamui's reply, muttered as he walked towards her, no louder than a soft whisper. Reaching the spot upon which she sat, he stopped and silently brought his umbrella forward to cover her too. And together, they watched their sunset, listening to the ever-just-there sound of rain falling, and seeing only a canvas known as the sky before them, slowly being painted a muddy gray as little, indiscriminate rays of sunlight shone through the unbreakable barrier of clouds for the first time in remembered history.

"Say... Kamui... Have you ever seen the sun?" Mila broke the silence.

"No, I haven't."

Another pause, the silence was back.

"Did you know... There are these things called rainbows?" Mila ever-so-slightly shifted her head up, her eyes falling upon the deadened sky, "They're supposed to be beautiful,_ an arc of seven colours stretching across the_ sky."

Kamui didn't move.

"They're supposed to appear even after the longest, hardest rain, you know," Mila continued on, almost dreamily, but not quite; it could be said as more melancholy, "That's what my mother - real of course - used to tell me."

"Mila..."

"Don't you start feeling sorry for me now, I barely even knew her," she managed a sad smile, "Besides, there are others who better deserve your pity." The last words were barely audible, just the hint of a whisper.

"No, not that," Kamui averted his eyes, once again staring into the shadow where the sun should've been setting, "I, I've been thinking about it for a while now. This planet - this dull, unchanging planet - I don't see a use in staying here. I want to leave. Will you come with me?"

"I..." Mila looked over in surprise.

"The rain's never gonna end, you know that, I know you do, and there's a whole universe out there, just waiting to be explored! I'll even show you a rainbow, I promise. I'm sure I can find one. So, that's why..." Kamui rushed on, his words stumbling over each other.

"Stop it," Mila sighed, smiling her now-seemingly-trademark sad smile, "You know that I can't."

"But why not?" Kamui's voice rang out, loud and desperate in the silence of the muffled rain, "You want to see a rainbow, don't you? You'll never see it here! So why..."

"Sorry."

And although the smile was still there, there was also something else in her eyes. Something, a hint of things not quite right. A flash of the shadow of a secret. An omen, of what was to come.

* * *

_That night, a boy walked alone, through the darkness of a night unlit by even the stars' brilliance. His mind was in turmoil, his thoughts chaotic. He was about to do something he would regret, he could tell that even in his state, but he would do it anyway. It didn't matter the consequences, whatever they were to be, but he just couldn't forgive __**him**__, not after what __**he'd**__ done. He hadn't even known about it, hadn't suspected a thing, until overhearing __**their **__conversation earlier today._

_"What did you tell him?"_

_"Nothing. I-"_

_"That's good. You're not leaving. You're never leaving here. Remember your promise."_

_"Yes..."_

_She had been crying, he could tell. She would deny it if ever asked, and __**he**__ hadn't seen her tears, but he knew. He just did. And that's why he was going now, to a confrontation he knew would do no good, but be had to go. No matter what. Even if he loses. Even if there'd be no forgiveness. Even if he died._


End file.
